WikiLeaks: U.S. fears bioweapons from India labs

Another cable released Friday detailed a confidential 2005 briefing by the International Committee of the Red Cross that accused India of the widespread use of torture in Kashmir, where the Indian government confronts a raging separatist insurgency.

The Red Cross said it had interviewed 1,491 detainees in Kashmir between 2002 and 2004 and found that many had been beaten, hung from the ceiling, put in stress positions, sexually abused or tortured with electricity, water or a round metal object called “the roller” used to crush a person’s thighs, the cable said

The Red Cross had raised the issues with India for a decade and the continuation of the practice led the agency to believe the government condoned the torture, it said.

In response to the accusation, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash said Friday: “India is an open and democratic nation which adheres to the rule of law. If and when an aberration occurs, it is promptly and firmly dealt with under existing legal mechanisms in an effective and transparent manner.”

The cables also revealed that Rahul Gandhi, a top official in the ruling Congress Party, warned in 2009 that homegrown Hindu extremist groups could pose a greater threat than established Islamist militant groups, such as Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, which has been blamed for the Mumbai attacks.

Mr. Gandhi appeared to be referring to the danger of a flare up in Hindu-Muslim communal violence caused by some of the more extreme leaders of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, according to the cable, which was written by Ambassador Timothy Roemer.

Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma contributed to this report.

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